This invention relates generally to a safety mechanism for a semi-automatic pistol that is fed from a detachable magazine, said mechanism often being called a magazine safety; more specifically this invention relates to a magazine safety for a particular pistol commonly known as the Makarov pistol.
The term "Makarov pistol" refers to a pistol that was the standard military sidearm of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), beginning about 1954. It is a relatively compact pistol (having a length of about 16 centimeters) and is a semi-automatic, magazine-fed, blowback pistol that fires a 9.times.18 millimeter cartridge. The Makarov pistol has also been a standard military sidearm of some countries of the former East Bloc, including the former German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). The pistol has also been variously known as the PM, Pistolet Makarova, Pistole M, Type 59 and other designations, depending on the country of manufacture or use; it is still in production in Russia and elsewhere. Ex-military examples of Makarov pistols are often prized by collectors of martial arms.
The Makarov is commonly described as a double-action firearm. But like most pistols that are so described, the Makarov may (at the option of the user) be fired either in double-action or single-action operation. In double action, a pull on the trigger both cocks and releases the hammer, to fire a cartridge that is already in the chamber. In single action, the hammer is separately cocked, either manually (by the user) or automatically (by movement of various mechanisms when the pistol is fired); a pull on the trigger then serves only to release the hammer. Typically, a "double-action" pistol is fired by double action for the first shot, and single action thereafter.
Makarov pistols may be considered to be essentially identical in all mechanical respects, regardless of the country or year of manufacture. Universally, the Makarov pistol has an exposed safety on its left side that can be manually engaged, but it does not incorporate a magazine safety. A magazine safety is a device that automatically renders the pistol incapable of being fired while the magazine is removed from a well in the pistol's frame. Of course, magazine safeties are not new. Proponents of magazine safeties have patented numerous examples over the past seventy years. Provided below is a listing of the significant patents known to the applicant.
______________________________________ Patent Inventor Title ______________________________________ 1,024,932 G. Vander Haeghen Small Arm 1,183,115 E. G. Reising Trigger Mechanism For Automatic Firearms 2,563,720 B. Guisasola Magazine-Operated Safety For Automatic Firearms 3,415,000 J. Koucky et al. Magazine Catch Means Including A Trigger Safety 3,857,325 F. S. Thomas Semi-Automatic Firearm 4,031,648 F. S. Thomas Magazine Safety and Ejector 4,291,481 R. L. Hillberg Firearm Magazine Safety Mechanism 4,420,899 M. V. Bourlet Automatic Pistol With Combined Magazine Control Safety And Magazine Ejection Mechanism 4,428,138 L. W. Seecamp Double-Action Trigger Mechanism With Trigger- Blocking Magazine Safety For Firearms 5,225,612 K. Bernkrant Magazine Gun Lock Safety ______________________________________
So, numerous examples may be found in the patent literature of how to incorporate a magazine safety as an integral part of the kinematic chain between a pistol's trigger and its hammer, etc. The ability to incorporate a magazine safety into a new pistol, as it is being designed, can be described as essentially a matter of design choice. However, when a particular pistol has already been designed and built, it is a completely different matter to consider whether it might be possible to retrofit the pistol with such a safety. Initially, them is the problem of finding interior space to insert new or modified parts into an existing pistol; and there is also the matter of avoiding interference with moving parts that are involved in normal pistol operation. And even if the technical obstacles can be overcome, there remains the question of whether the modification requires such an expenditure in tooling and labor as to make the modification economically infeasible.
There are four patents that are known to the applicant that can be aptly categorized as involving modifications of existing pistols. All four of these patents relate to modifications of pistols that were manufactured by Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Conn.; two relate to the COLT Cal. .45 Model 1911, and two relate to the COLT WOODSMAN. They are listed below.
______________________________________ Patent Inventor Title ______________________________________ 1,638,068 G. H. Tansley Magazine Safety Device For Automatic Pistols 1,719,384 G. H. Tansley Magazine Safety Device For Automatic Pistols 2,372,519 W. F. Roper Magazine Safety For Automatic Firearms 2,459,838 J. Quinn et al. Trigger Lock For Pistols ______________________________________
But even these four patents reveal that some original part (or parts) must be modified by being drilled, machined or otherwise altered in order to accommodate the "add-on" magazine safeties that have been disclosed. And when considering the retrofitting of an existing pistol with a magazine safety, the economic feasibility of doing so will likely be determined by the costs of tooling and skilled labor for: 1) disassembly; 2) drilling holes, machining slots or making whatever structural changes are needed (in parts that may already have been hardened and that would therefore be difficult to cut); 3) cleaning; and 4) reassembly.
While the technical features of magazine safeties have been known for many years, the desirability of such devices remains open to debate; indeed, the firearms community of manufacturers and their customers are divided about equally as to whether such devices are desirable. Thus, the inclusion of a magazine safety in any particular firearm is essentially a matter of the preference of the designer or user.
As further background for this invention, an important consideration to collectors of military memorabilia (including firearms) is that an item be, or at least appear to be, in the same condition as it was when originally manufactured. At a minimum, a collectible firearm should look like it is in the same condition as when it was originally issued to military personnel. So, if it should become necessary to drill new holes, machine grooves or slots, or add new appendages in order to accommodate a new magazine safety, then such machine work will almost certainly reduce the appeal of the modified pistol to serious collectors of authentic memorabilia. Thus, if a person should ever choose to add a magazine safety to a Makarov pistol, it would be desirable to incorporate such a device without any alteration of the original parts.
It would also be desirable to incorporate a magazine safety in a Makarov pistol without any change in the external appearance of the pistol, thus preserving the authenticity (and thereby the value) of ex-military examples for collectors of martial arms.
It is a further object of this invention to permit a magazine safety to be installed and then later removed from a Makarov pistol without leaving any evidence of its earlier installation, fully restoring the pistol to its original configuration--if a collector so desires.
One more object is to provide a magazine safety for a Makarov pistol that can be installed without requiring any major disassembly of an existing pistol (as contrasted with a pistol that is being newly manufactured and assembled).
It is also an object of this invention to provide a magazine safety that can be economically retrofitted by--the simple installation of two small parts, one of which is a spring.
These and other objects will be apparent from a careful reading of the specification and the concluding claims, and the drawings that are provided herewith.